5 huge mistakes by UFC fighters in championship fights

#4. Petr Yan throws an illegal knee against Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259

At UFC 259, Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling locked horns with the bantamweight title on the line. Many believed Sterling would pose a tricky test for Yan, considering the former's wrestling prowess. However, what ensued when the duo locked horns left fans watching in disbelief.

Sterling came out like a house on fire in the first round and put an incredible pace on the then-champion. However, he wasn't able to maintain it. Yan took over in the next three rounds and was clearly en route to victory. Then, a bizarre illegal knee from the Russian rendered Sterling unable to continue.

As a direct result of what happened, Sterling was awarded the victory via disqualification and also managed to secure the title – becoming the first fighter in UFC history to win the strap this way.

It certainly was an embarrassing mistake on Yan's part. For a champion to be unaware of the rules in a contest of this magnitude is unheard of in the modern era. Simply put, it was an extremely disappointing way to lose the title.

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#3. Chris Weidman throws an ill-advised head-kick against Luke Rockhold at UFC 194

Chris Weidman put his title on the line against top contender Luke Rockhold at UFC 194. Weidman, the then-undefeated middleweight champion, was looking to defend his title for the fourth time while Rockhold earned his shot at the belt following a sensational submission victory over Lyoto Machida.

The fight between the two 185 lbs fighters was dead-even in the first two rounds. In the third, Weidman threw a telegraphed spinning heel kick at Rockhold. Before the slow kick could get to its target, the challenger closed the distance and grabbed the champion.

Rockhold intelligently utilized his own body-weight to drag Weidman down to the canvas and proceeded to secure the mount position from there. He spent the remainder of the round raining down a relentless barrage of punches, elbows and hammer-fists on the champion.

Weidman, bloodied and battered, somehow managed to survive the round and make it back to his corner. Rockhold took him down in the fourth round and secured a TKO finish soon after.

The aforementioned ill-advised kick turned out to be the clear turning point in the fight as the defending champion hardly looked the same after the error.

Watch the full fight below: